Event Coverage

Apparently 2008 has been the year of the eco-friendly cars and we already know what that means: cars that won’t get you bankrupt with the amount of fuel they “eat” when you push the pedal. At the Paris Motor Show this year, Seat introduced their new Ibiza Ecomotive that manages to get a 76.3 mpg from a 1.4 TDI engine that sports 80 hp. And the CO2 emissions are down at 98 g/km which is the lowest in its segment.

How they managed to do that? It’s the new engine software they’ve been working on, the low rolling resistance tires and the revised ratios. Plus some minor design modifications to make it more aerodynamic-friendly. It will be first released in the UK and will come in both the five door and the SportCoupe.

The Paris Motor Show this year, has a lot (A LOT) of hot stuff going on. For example, Ferrari’s new baby, the California has been unveiled (officially) and boy that thing looks neat. I can see it designed for the lovely sunny beaches in California, it has an aluminum hardtop – keeping weight down – that only takes 14 seconds to open or close.

With a cute “little” 4.3-litre V8 engine inside that develops nothing less than 460 hp the new Ferrari California goes to 100km/h in less than 4 seconds and tops at 310km/h. But the engine seems to be very well optimized … It will take 13.1-l of fuel for every 100km you drive, but … will emit 305.6 g\km in harmful CO2 (that I don’t like). If you can afford it, then you should know it comes with various suspension settings, a new 7-speed double-clutch gearbox, satellite navigation and some other goodies for large pockets.

For those that can afford a £1million, I honestly think that Aston Martin’s new one-77 supercar is really going to be worth spending that much. The company just gave the press and us all, a sneak peak of what it will look like. Apparently just a concept at the moment, the veil covered prototype got everyones attention with its sleek look. Too bad there isn’t a production ready Aston Martin Rapide to accompany the new one-77. However, great marketing … they got my attention.

There is only one month before the Paris Motor Show starts and Honda wanted to tease us with a couple of pictures of its new 5-door hybdird (concept) hatchback.

Dubbed Honda Insight, the concept design is based on the new FCX Clarity which will be sold starting next year (first half of 2009) in Europe, Japan and North America. The new Insight is going to use the same Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) hybrid power plant as the Clarity and the company says it’s going to be the most affordable hybrid so far.

I for one, like the design even though it doesn’t look sporty, but it’s a step forward in designing hybrid vehicles that actually look “buyable”. I’m really anxious of seeing the new Insight Concept in Paris and to read a few official materials about it.

And so we’re rolling. After seeing the new Citroen Hypnos concept that is about to be presented in one month at the Paris Motor Show, we have a new one. It’s Mazda with its Kiyora Urban Concept – means ‘clean and pure’ in Japanese – combining driving with pleasure and safety.

Designed for a youthful lifestyle, the new Kiyora Urban is based on Mazda’s Nagare, is light and even though it looks small it should offer the highest levels of security. With a next-generation four-cylinder direct-injection engine the car wants to be what every student wants to get as a gift after graduation. The pictures look really neat, but I’ll doubt we’ll see the new Kiyora on the streets, any time soon.

Only 1 month ahead of the Paris Motor Show, we have a lot of concepts bursting like popcorn. The French from Citroen are preparing the new Hypnos Concept (is that from hypnosis, are you feeling hypnotized?), another great model when it comes to its design. Built as a crossover with BMW X6 flavor, it has the elegance of a saloon and the space of an SUV, which is great.

The new Citroen Hypnos is going to focus very much on lower fuel consumption and CO2 emissions and the company managed to do so even if it uses a hybrid 200bhp(147kW) engine – 4.5 liters/100km and 120g/km of CO2. Looks great so if you’d like to know more, let’s wait till the begging of October for more info.

There are some interesting things happening in Moscow at the Russian Motor Show, but I liked this one in particular because I’m a Honda Civic fan for at least 15 years now. The Japanese from Mugen Motorsports, managed to take a standard Honda Civic 5-door hatchback and build a special new look, just for it and most likely for the European market. I’m pretty confident that Honda is gaining popularity in South Africa and that more and more dealers will be interested in getting some tuning deals for their clients.

Not sure about you, but that sure looks nice in my opinion. Am I subjective, or it’s the general opinion?

It seems the pictures with the brand new BMW 7 Series have leaked a little sooner than the official ones. The official day of presentation was supposed to be the 7th of July. 7th day of the 7th month. How mystical!

But it was moved to the 8th, and was held in Moscow’s Red Square. 400 big shots from all around the world were invited to see the wonder that is the 7 Series which was housed in a giant hourglass filled with thousands of shiny balls that fell one by one to reveal the brand new car to our mortal eyes.